Is the Government rattled?

[handsomefortune]

nasty tories sell more playing fields

also discussed as a topic for statistical analysis on 'more or less' on r4. however, gove's relaxation of rules regarding land use and schools wasn't included in equations iirc. it's an important change in situation nationally.....land grab-wise.

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

oops not going well

[cloughie]

Here we are in UK in mid-August, generally a quite month politically as everyone is on holiday.

So why is Iain Duncan-Smith launching an attack on the BBC's impartiality in the reporting of Stephanie Flanders on the economy, accusing her of "peeing all over British industry"?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2012/aug/19/iain-duncan-smith-bias-bbc

And it's not just the BBC that's copping it in this outbreak of hostilities.

According to a group of Tory young turks, Britons are among "the worst idlers" in the world preferring a "lie-in to hard work", according to group of rising stars of the Tory party, who have advocated a tough set of work reforms in a new book which appears to be supporting Iain Duncan Smith's welfare reforms.

According to leaked extracts from the book, Britannia Unchained – Global Growth and Prosperity, five Tory MPs from the "class of 2010" call for a culture of "graft, risk and effort" to propel Britain into the "superleague" of nations.

The book contains a blueprint of radical reforms. The MPs – Kwasi Kwarteng, Priti Patel, Dominic Raab, Chris Skidmore and Elizabeth Truss – say: "Once they enter the workplace, the British are among the worst idlers in the world. We work among the lowest hours, we retire early and our productivity is poor."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2012/aug/17/tory-backbenchers-urge-welfare-reforms

replace workplace with parliament and there you have our 'think the world owes them a living and credibility, back-bench tory MPs'.

[handsomefortune]

i'm scared of people with the views of Telboy, from Dymchurch tbh.

[amateur51]

oops not going well

You gotta love Ken Clarke for being so independent of mind

[Pianorak]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/9486537/Councils-told-to-sell-most-valuable-houses-to-build-more-affordable-homes.html

Last para:
However, Neil O'Brien, director of Policy Exchange, said the proposal would not mean social housing tenants have to move away from their local area, just to less sought-after street.

That's alright then.

[Serial_Apologist]

You gotta love Ken Clarke for being so independent of mind

Said to love jazz, and also reputed to frequent Ronnie's, maybe why he thinks he gets away with it Scott free.

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

Said to love jazz, and also reputed to frequent Ronnie's, maybe why he thinks he gets away with it Scott free.

.... yeh and looks like he ate there too, against the owner's advice!

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Wasn't he once a total failure as a Tory leader?

On the contrary, he could be regarded as a success, for unlike the other recent Tory leaders, he did at least realise he was making a mess of things.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

But let's not blame the leaders of the nasty party. It's the "collaborators" who continue to allow them to do it.

(And I voted for 'em. )

[amateur51]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/poli...ble-homes.html

Last para:
However, Neil O'Brien, director of Policy Exchange, said the proposal would not mean social housing tenants have to move away from their local area, just to less sought-after street.

That's alright then.

Does this "bright spark" not realise that part of the current housing crisis is down to Thatcher's policy of selling-off council housing at a ludicrous discount and then not allowing councils to spend the capital thus released on building replacement council housing.;yikes:

It just boggles belief

[ahinton]

Does this "bright spark" not realise that part of the current housing crisis is down to Thatcher's policy of selling-off council housing at a ludicrous discount and then not allowing councils to spend the capital thus released on building replacement council housing.;yikes:

It just boggles belief

I think that you mean that it beggars belief and that the mind accordingly boggles, said he, momentarily overlooking the fact that he isn't contributing to the pedants' corner thread or whatever it's called...

If - and I do say if - this proposed exercise does not and will not involve throwing anyone out of their current social housing but will instead come into play only when a council tenant either dies or chooses to leave such accommodation of his/her free will, then I don't see that there should be a problem in principle with this, provided also that the risk of possible ghettoisation is avoided at all costs; after all, it was, is and ever shall be the fault of neither the council tenants nor the local authorities nor even the government when a poor area becomes much wealthier with the consequential escalation in property values.

That said, it is, to me at least, a grave indictment against governments over many years that there remains a need for "social housing" at all, other than in very unusual and exceptional circumstances.

[teamsaint]

Governments are very happy for there to be a shortage of housing. If they weren't, they would do something about it.

(all governments , sadly, not just this vindictive aggressive lot).

[amateur51]

I think that you mean that it beggars belief and that the mind accordingly boggles, said he, momentarily overlooking the fact that he isn't contributing to the pedants' corner thread or whatever it's called...

If - and I do say if - this proposed exercise does not and will not involve throwing anyone out of their current social housing but will instead come into play only when a council tenant either dies or chooses to leave such accommodation of his/her free will, then I don't see that there should be a problem in principle with this, provided also that the risk of possible ghettoisation is avoided at all costs; after all, it was, is and ever shall be the fault of neither the council tenants nor the local authorities nor even the government when a poor area becomes much wealthier with the consequential escalation in property values.

That said, it is, to me a grave indictment against governments over many years that there remains a need for "social housing" at all, other than in very unusual and exceptional circumstances.

Eggjelly, as a consenting adult, I assure that when I type boggles I mean boggles


All the research that has been done about 'social housing' over the last 30 years has recommended the development of mixed housing solutions, being private ownership, shared ownership, and social renting so that there is a mix of income types, thus avoiding ghettoisation.

I sincerely hope that there will always be 'social housing' - for those who cannot or don't want to afford home ownership or the private rented sector. Some of us want to pay a fair (controlled) rent to a fair landlord(local authority, housing association, co-operative or private landlord) and not to accumulate wealth through property value, thank you.

[Angle]

Eggjelly, as a consenting adult, I assure that when I type boggles I mean boggles

Nicely put, Am. Sadly, as a consenting adult I have not seen anything to boggle at for ages.